Download Knapdale Geology Leaflet Page 1

THE PEOPLE STORY
7,000 years ago, people started to settle around
Knapdale's coastal glens and natural harbours. The sea
was important for food and trade. Even today few roads
cross the north-east/south-west trending knaps.
Keills Stacks of agglomerate (fragments of exploded
lava in limestone). Look for pillow lavas on the west side
of the peninsula.
Discover the nature story of Knapdale by connecting
its rocks and landforms to the plants and animals.
Places of worship (kil means a church) and defence (dun
is a fort) were built on top of the harder ridges of quartzite
and metadolerite. The settlers farmed on the more fertile
low ground, formed from limestone or slate.
Geology forms the character of North Knapdale corrugated, indented and boggy. 'Knapp' is Norse for
ridge; and 'dail' is Gaelic for meadow.
People carved grave slabs and crosses from the schistose
metadolerite.
Inverlussa (lus means herbs) The old road from a
limestone kiln leads to pastures green and the church.
Grit and metadolerite were quarried for buildings, and
slate was used for roofs and floors.
This part of peninsula Argyll forms fingers of land and
sea, aligned with the north-east to south-west 'grain' of
Scotland.
FOLLOW THE ROCK STORY
A 816
Crinan
N
Cairnbaan
Barnluasgan
Tayvallich
i
B 841
Lochgilphead
B 8025
Kilmory bay Twenty metres south of the beach, see
these huge folds of grit, crumpled like a table cloth.
Dun
Mhuirich
Inverlussa
Ardrishaig
LOCH
FYNE
Keills
Castle
Sween
A 83
Kilmory
B 8024
THE LINK BETWEEN ROCKS
AND LIVING SPECIES
Barnluasgan Oakwood trail - view knaps and dales.
Barr an Daimh trail - view Crinan fault.
Dun Mhuirich built on a ridge of quartzite, beside an inlet
of the sea. There are limestone outcrops nearby which
were quarried to fertilise the land for cultivation.
www.argyllgeology.co.uk
www.scottishgeology.com
Front cover shows the deserted village of Arichonan.
Rocks, soils and water are the foundation of life,
on which plants, animals and people depend.
These rocks deliver a living home to Knapdale's
special plant and animal life.